The present invention relates to therapeutic devices and pertains particularly to a therapeutic pressure strap for treating "tennis elbow".
The pathological condition frequently referred to as "tennis elbow" afflicts many people. This is primarily because of the popularity of tennis as a social game, which is played by people who are not in top physical condition. This pathological condition is a painful inflammation of the arm at the elbow. This inflammation is believed to result from the stretching of the tendons which has its point of origin on or at the elbow. It has been discovered that the application of pressure by means of a strap to this area can provide relief from the pain thereof.
Many proposed constructions of straps for this purpose are known. The prior art approach to this problem is exemplified by the following U.S. patents:
U.S. Pat. No. 3,789,842 issued Feb. 5, 1974 to Froimson;
U.S. Pat. No. 3,877,426 issued Apr. 15, 1975 to Nirschl;
U.S. Pat. No. 3,942,525 issued Mar. 9, 1976 to Dragan; and
U.S. Pat. No. 3,970,031 issued July 20, 1976 to Applegate, Jr.
Other straps of somewhat similar construction for other purposes are as follows:
U.S. Pat. No. 3,570,496 issued Mar. 16, 1971 to Sachs;
U.S. Pat. No. 3,586,001 issued June 22, 1971 to Sanderson.
Still other patents of interest are the following:
U.S. Pat. No. 222,754 issued Dec. 16, 1879 to Vaughan et al;
U.S. Pat. No. 3,086,529 issued Apr. 23, 1963 to Munz et al;
U.S. Pat. No. 3,570,495 issued Mar. 16, 1971 to Wright;
U.S. Pat. No. 3,699,945 issued Oct. 24, 1972 to Hanafin;
U.S. Pat. No. 3,930,506 issued Jan. 6, 1976 to Overend.
While these many constructions each provide some form of relief for this problem, there is still considerable room for improvement. Accordingly, it is desirable that an improved and more effective device be provided for relieving the pain of tennis elbow.